Donna--

Jesse's opinion is probably the best advice you can get, especially if 
your intent is to retain the records digitally.

Stephen Cohen
Records Manager
MetLife \ Legal Affairs
27-01 Queens Plaza North
Long Island City NY 11101
212-578-2373




"Jesse Wilkins" <[log in to unmask]> 
Sent by: "Records Management Program" <[log in to unmask]>
04/03/2008 10:43 AM
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"Records Management Program" <[log in to unmask]>


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Subject
Re: Media for long term preservation of records






Hi Donna, 

What Fred said. There are some materials that will last longer than that, 
or are at least claimed to last longer than that by the vendors(!), but 
the much larger issue is access to hardware capable of reading such media 
in 15 or 50 or 100 years, to a computer that can interface with such a 
reader (drivers, cabling, etc.), and to software that can interpret the 
data on the media. 

The best you can do today in my opinion is to select good quality media, 
use standard media types and file formats, store them in reasonably stable 
environments, and plan and budget for migration every 5-10 years. It's an 
ugly solution, but it's better than about anything else readily available 
today. 

Regards, 

Jesse Wilkins
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